In a printing press of the lithographic and letter press variety, it is customary to have an ink fountain in which the rate of application of ink to a roller is controlled so as to result in a uniform application of ink during printing. Prior art ink fountains have included numerous forms of segmented type ink blades that are individually adjustable so as to control the rate of application of ink to the fountain roller. Examples are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 367,526--Jaeck; 984,913--Hayes; 2,583,640--Faeber; 3,623,430--Lessun; and, 3,779,165--Abendroth, et al. These examples are typical of the prior art and are not intended to represent all of the prior art. However, as far as is known, ink fountains of the prior art are disadvantageous in several aspects which the present invention is designed to overcome.
First, most are made of separate parts that are assembled in place in the press. In contrast, the instant invention comprises an assembly of parts that are movable together and are mounted as a unit in a press. Moreover, the use of an assembly permits different sized and shaped ones to be made to fit different presses and yet allows many common parts to be used in the various assemblies.
Second, many of the prior art devices are difficult to clean and maintain. By use of the assembly arrangement of the invention, the moving parts are protected from contamination except for the exposed ends of the ink blades. For maintenance, the assembly includes a plate that can be readily removed while the assembly is in place in the press, to provide access to the inner parts.